This invention relates to a method of manufacturing high protein low calorie dairy-based spreads, in which a protein containing water phase and a fat phase are prepared separately and then mixed to form a water-in-oil emulsion.
The invention is particularly suited for the manufacture of edible fats which can be spread at refrigerator temperature and the invention will be described herein primarily with reference to the manufacture of dairy spreads having this property. However, the invention is not restricted to manufacture of such dairy spreads and may be employed in a number of different fields, as will be evident to those skilled in the art.
In a known method of manufacturing a low calorie dairy spread, a water phase is prepared, using skim milk as starting material, in which the protein is milk casein obtained by acid precipitation and the water phase is dispersed in the fat phase in a closed cooling and crystallization system so as to obtain a water-in-oil emulsion at a temperature at which the fat is beginning to crystallize. Prior to dispersing the water phase in the fat phase, the protein-containing water phase is subjected to a temperature of between 65.degree. and 80.degree. C. for 10 to 30 minutes.
This known method has some disadvantages, due primarily to the difficulty of obtaining a stable emulsion having a water phase content as high as 60% and of obtaining a product which is microbiologically stable.